In the typical swimming pool or spa environment to which the invention pertains, a filtering system within the swimming pool circulates the pool water through a filter and returns it to the pool. In the typical environment, a substantial amount of dirt and sediment as well foreign materials, such as leaves and insects, tend to collect upon the bottom and side surfaces of the pool. In most instances, the filtering system of the pool does not adequately dislodge and remove the submerged collected particles. To meet the cleaning problems associated with such submerged sediment and debris, the pool may be periodically vacuumed using a hand manipulated vacuum unit coupled to the filtering system of the pool or, in the alternative, a submersible pool or spa vacuum unit of the type to which the invention pertains may be employed.
Such submersible pool vacuuming units vary considerably in structure but generally all comprise a submersible housing which supports a plurality of drive wheels and an internal hydraulic drive unit. A water supply hose extends from the drive unit and provides a coupling to a source of water under pressure such as the discharge port of the above-mentioned pool filtering system. In many instances, an additional unit known as a "rear whip" is employed to stir and dislodge sediment from the pool bottom and side surfaces. A filter bag, typically formed of a mesh-like material readily porous to water flow, is coupled to the housing and receives a flow of water. In normal operation, the water flow is applied to the drive unit and to a vacuuming chamber within the housing such that the pool vacuum is caused to move about the pool bottom and side surfaces while the water flow creates a vacuuming action upon the submerged pool surface in which sediment and debris are carried into the filter bag. Because the bag is porous to the water flow, the water flow is discharged through the fabric of the filter bag returning to the pool environment while the dirt and sediment is trapped within the filter bag.
Examples of such pool vacuuming units are found in U.S. Pat. No. 3,972,339 issued to Henkin, et al. which sets forth an AUTOMATIC SWIMMING POOL CLEANER which comprises a car adapted to travel underwater along a random path on a pool vessel surface for dislodging debris therefrom. The car wheels are driven by a water powered turbine to move the car. Means within the car provide the above-described water flow creating the vacuuming action within the car. The water flow carrying the debris is directed upwardly through a discharge nozzle to a generally balloon-like filter bag formed of a mesh material.
Another example of such pool vacuuming units is found in U.S. Pat. No. 3,822,754 issued to Henkin, et al. which sets forth an AUTOMATIC SWIMMING POOL CLEANER having a structure virtually identical to that set forth in U.S. Pat. No. 3,972,339. U.S. Pat. No. 3,822,754 shows a similar balloon-like filter bag receiving the discharge flow of the pool cleaning unit.
In the most filter bags employed in the above-described pool vacuuming units, the filter bag is formed of a mesh-like material having a generally flexible character which is formed into a closed unit having an inlet opening and means for securing the inlet opening to the discharge port of the pool vacuum unit. While the above-described pool cleaning system functions satisfactorily, several difficulties arise in the accumulation of debris within the filter bag. Typically such debris has been found to accumulate in places within the filter bag which tend to clog or interfere with the operation of the pool vacuum unit. In addition, the cleaning of such filter bags is often a cumbersome and difficult task. These problems have promted practitioners in the art to develop various filter bags intended to better control the water flow and accumulation of debris within the filter bag. An example of such recently developed filter bags is set forth in U.S. Pat. No. 4,618,420 issued to Alanis which sets forth a FILTER BAG FOR POOL CLEANERS which is formed from an elongated stretch of porous fabric such as nylon mesh folded upon itself to define conforming left and right side walls which are joined by front and rear seams. The filter bag set forth defines a seamless upper end. A mounting collar secures the bottom end of the filter bag to the discharge port of the pool vacuum unit. An upstanding divider seam is provided which divides the filter bag into a flow chamber coupled to the discharge port and a collection chamber adjacent to but separated from the discharge port. The intent in U.S. Pat. No. 4,618,420 is to provide a relatively intense flow upwardly through the flow chamber and the collection of debris within the collection chamber as a result of flow direction within the bag. A Velcro-type fastener strip is attached to a separable seam within the debris collection chamber to provide for cleaning of the bag.
A filter bag substantially similar to that set forth in U.S. Pat. No. 4,618,420 is also set forth in Design Pat. No. 288,373 issued to Alanis and entitled a FILTER BAG.
Other U.S. Patents such as U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,932,281, 3,063,077, and Design Pat. No. 260,094 set forth additional uses of mesh type filter bags.
While the foregoing described prior art filter bags have enjoyed some commercial success and have produced some improvement in the performance of such pool vacuuming units, they remain subject to some extent to the above-described problems associated with the accumulation of debris in undesired portions of the filter bag and difficulties associated with cleaning the filter bag and removing accumulated debris therefrom.
There remains, therefore, a need in the art for an efficient easy to use pool vacuum filter bag which avoids accumulation of debris in undesired places and which provides for the easy removal of debris and cleaning of the filter bag.